5 Best U.S. Cities to Work In

Thanks in large part to Silicon Valley's treasure trove of desirable companies, cities on the West Coast are among the best places to work in the U.S., according to a recent Glassdoor study.

1. San Jose, California

The third largest city in California and the 10th in the U.S., Silicon Valley's San Jose was voted the best U.S. city to work in. The city, which houses tech giants like Adobe, Cisco and eBay, hosted 13 winners of Glassdoor's list of top 50 best places to work for 2013, including Google, LinkedIn and Apple, which are located in the surrounding suburbs.

"Lots of perks (gym, free soda, company planes that fly between campuses)," an anonymous finance analyst at Intel wrote in a Glassdoor review. "In general the people are really smart, hard working and fun to be around."

More than 3,500 employers of all sizes and industries were said to be hiring in San Jose as of June 1, according to Glassdoor. The top three most in-demand jobs were software engineer, program manager and sales associate.

2. San Francisco, California

Located on the outskirts of Silicon Valley, the city already famous for Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge was voted the second most desirable city to work in.

San Francisco houses a handful of Fortune 500 companies like Wells Fargo, Visa and Gap, and its surrounding area hosts13 companies on Glassdoor's 2013 list of top places to work, including Facebook, Salesforce.com and Chevron.

"Transparent culture, dynamic work environment, benefits are great, bright co-workers that work hard, great location in SF," a Salesforce.com finance manager wrote in a Glassdoor review.

More than 6,400 employers were looking for new hires as of June 1, with software engineers, sales associates and online sales rep among the most in-demand jobs, according to Glassdoor.

3. Seattle, Washington

Despite the lack of sunshine, Seattle is the third most popular city to work in, with Starbucks, Amazon and Nordstrom among the top companies based there. As of June 1, more than 4,000 employers of all sizes were looking to hire in the city nestled in northwest Washington, with baristas, software engineers and sales associates among the most in-demand positions.

"What other company can you get benefits for working 20 hours a week?" one Seattle-based Starbucks Barista said in a Glassdoor review. "Their training program is great, hours are flexible, and it seems like the people working there actually want to be there."

4. Salt Lake City, Utah

The capital of Utah was voted the fourth best place to work in the U.S. The state's most populous city, and host of the 2002 Winter Olympics, Salt Lake City is home to Huntsman, a chemical products company that employs 12,000.

Nearly 2,000 employers in Salt Lake City were looking for new hires as of the beginning of June, with software engineers, sales associates and customer service reps among the most in-demand jobs.

5. Washington D.C.

The U.S. capital narrowly topped Orlando, San Diego and Boston as the fifth best city in the U.S. to work in. The District of Columbia hosts three Fortune 500 companies, including mortgage lender Fannie Mae, diversified manufacturer Danaher and public utility Pepco.

As of June 1, close to 7,500 employers of all sizes were looking for at least one new hire in D.C., with program managers, systems engineers and registered nurses among the top in demand.

"A meaningful purpose, passionate colleagues, strong leadership, excellent benefits, flexible schedules, and the opportunity to work beside and learn from some of the best investors in the world," one D.C.-based Motley Fool analyst wrote in a review.